28 Days
by MalfoysMuggleMrs
Summary: An unwanted pregnancy prompts the use of a curious Time-Turner discovered within Malfoy Manor. In an attempt to travel back in time and fix their monumental mistake, Rose and Scorpius find themselves hurled into the year 1996. 28 years backward instead of 28 days. WIP. RW/SM with hints of DM/HG. (**ON HIATUS**)
1. The Test

**Title: 28 Days**

 **Pairings: Rose/Scorpius, Draco/Hermione, Albus S.P/OC**

 **Rating: M for eventual smut, language and adult content.**

 **Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter, nor any of the characters within it.**

 **Fully compliant with DH-epilogue, but not entirely cannon with The Cursed Child... Although I will not be going against it _per se_ (I've tried to keep their personalities relatively similar), I won't be making any direct ties or mention to the events that supposedly happened. Bits and pieces have been taken from it, though. **

**Happy reading! :)**

* * *

 _"It could be wrong, couldn't it?"_

The voice of Ali Longbottom sounded meekly hopeful at best. The brunette's hazel orbs attempted to lock together with Rose's blue ones; her formerly horrified expression now resting only blank and emotionless. The two friends stared idly into a half-filled cauldron sitting within their empty dormitory, its bubbling content illuminating a shade of bright fuchsia. A dreaded message neither girls had fully prepared themselves for.

"It's not wrong." Rose Weasley did her damndest to choke out moderately stable words, the task proving harder than originally anticipated. She bit back warm tears, pushing down an ever-present urge to spew illness across the orange rug beneath her bed.

"Maybe we didn't add enough Gurdyroot to the potion?" Ali suggested a bit more hopefully. "It says here; we were supposed to finely chop it before adding th – "

"I'm fucked. Absolutely and utterly fucked."

Ali's hopefulness went ignored completely.

Rose finally glanced up to meet the gaze of her best friend who sat nearby on an opposing twin-sized bed, wishing she was instead the one giving out an empathetic and pitying grimace to Ali, versus the other way around. Not that Alice Augusta Longbottom would ever find herself entangled within such a horrible predicament. She surely wouldn't even dream of it. No, only Rose's questionable decision-making skills and bad luck could have ended anyone up in such a bloody disaster.

And what a disaster it was.

The time was still early, the grandfather clock within their empty dormitory not yet reading past ten in the morning.

Ali and Rose's other two roommates were likely halfway to Hogsmeade already, spending the abnormally warm autumn Saturday on a day trip to the small wizarding village, as was so incredibly characteristic for the group of Gryffindor girls to do together. Rose had feigned a stomach ache (which was proving to be less and less of a lie as the morning went on) when Dominique had asked why she wasn't going on that day's particular excursion. Ali hurriedly stated she would graciously stay behind also – to keep the redhead company– being used as her own personal excuse. Not particularly a lie either, though still blatantly untruthful via omission of one key detail...

The brewing and usage of a pregnancy test potion.

"You don't know that!" Ali argued, soon coming to sit on Rose's bed with her arms wrapped around the redhead before she had a moment's notice to object. "My mum once told me her test turned this disgusting green color with me. She thought since green was closest to blue, it naturally meant negative, right? She didn't find out until almost a month later at St Mungo's –"

"It's bloody pink!" Rose sobbed weakly, caving finally and leaning into Ali's comforting embrace. "Not red, not orange… or even pinkish-purple. Bright fucking pink, Ali! The exact shade that's on the bloody instructions, right next to the potion's ingredient list."

"But I'm just saying, it's not always right –"

"Of course it's right!" Rose cried softly, letting the warm tears roll down and away from her wet eyes. "Unless you have another logical explanation for why I woke up yesterday puking my brains out… and feel physically ill whenever I smell eggs at breakfast time. Please, clarify it for me. Because honestly, there's only one explanation which makes any sense right now."

Ali supplied kindly, "I told you already! All the kitchen house-elves have been going barmy ever since Tinsley passed away last month. My pork roast yesterday tasted like shoe leather –"

Rose interjected sarcastically, "Oh right, and I suppose me being five days late for my period is also fault of the house elves downstairs, now is it?"

"Five days is normal!" Ali and Rose both knew her objecting words were said only as comforting falsehoods. "That's nothing. I've skipped an entire month before! You're not even a full week late yet... it could just be stress."

"Except violent nausea plus a positive pregnancy test does NOT add up to only being a bit 'stressed out,' Ali. Merlin's beard, I'm not even stressed! Not really." Rose put a hand up to her pounding forehead, "At least I wasn't until now."

Ali continued her denial and struggled attempts to make Rose feel better, "We could have brewed the test wrong, you know... Besides, you'd only be what? Three weeks along, _at most_? People usually don't have morning sickness that early on. It could be something else entirely. Maybe your hormones are just wacky this month?"

"Of course they are! Some microscopic little-unwelcomed parasite is infiltrating within my should-be-barren womb –"

"I think the stomach flu's going around, too. It could be that."

Rose completely ignored the idea, continuing with her frantic rant. "I don't know why I'm so surprised in the first place. Shite, it doesn't take a bloody genius! Apparently, that lecture over our 'changing bodies' Madam Pomfrey gave out during third-year was completely wasted on us both!"

"I think it was wasted on everybody, to be honest with you."

Rose paused to take a saddened breath. "Look, thanks for trying, but we don't have to pretend there's any way around this sodding catastrophe. I'm pregnant. Seventeen, single, and knocked up by a guy I'm not even dating. How incredibly charming my life has become… And to think – I thought Roxy making Head Girl over me was the worst thing to happen this year."

Ali's face fell, sighing with defeat. They both knew the truth, despite how dreadful it was to admit aloud. It was staring them straight in the face through the form of a bubbling, pink, pregnancy test potion.

" _Gods_ , Rose. Why did you not just use the contraceptive charm?"

Ali vocalized her obvious question once more, having already been inquired back when Rose first mentioned her initial suspicion, only three days earlier. Rose had then divulged a second, minor, supporting detail to the story – having been left out during its original telling – of them not having used any type of precautions during said _incident_. Like any normal and intelligent seventeen-year-old witch or wizard would have done.

"Blimey, like I said before! It was Halloween," Rose let out an exasperated groan, running a hand through the messy mop of red curls atop her head. "We were both so drunk off that firewhisky Al was passing out in the Slytherin common room. Dominique ditched me AGAIN to go make out with Connor Finnegan. Merlin knows, that girl should be the one in this predicament instead of me... And we somehow ended up alone in his dorm –"

"Which you know better than _anyone_ is no longer even connected to the Slytherin common room! So you were obviously sober enough to walk all that way up there with him... The head boy's dorm is quite literally across the entire bloody castle."

"Alright, so?" Rose quipped. "We just… forgot I guess."

 _"Forgot"_. It was a white lie, but not one particularly worth amending.

Rose had already since decided against telling her friend the very minor and unimportant detail of how they did, in fact, use the contraceptive charm that night. Instead, it being the following morning where neglect had come into play; featuring an impromptu shower and both their wands being forgotten on the adjacent bedroom floor.

That would also mean admitting to, not only slipping up and breaking her vow of never again sleeping with _him_ anymore but also managing to do so without the usage of any intoxicating substances as aid. After all, the unmentionable four other times _it_ had happened was at the hands of loneliness and a bit too much Odgen's Firewhisky. Rose was unsure which exact strain of insanity had possessed over her long enough to assume it a smart idea to climb into the shower that one infamous morning-after. One-hundred percent sober, one-hundred percent reckless impulse.

She hardly wanted to admit that to herself, nonetheless somebody else. Even if Ali was her closest friend which she told everything to, back since the pair had practically been in diapers. It was a bit much for anyone to process fully. Even herself.

After all – the brainy Slytherin head boy and prankster Gryffindor quidditch-star were hardly friends. Let alone anything more outside of classroom structure. Or so anyone would think.

It was just, at times, Rose found herself in certain compromising positions, with far too much liquid-libation flowing within her blood, climbing into the bed of Scorpius Malfoy. Slytherin's biggest and most eligible male swot, who had managed to snag himself the title of head boy that year, despite being a branch to one of the most ill-respected and tainted family trees in wizarding Britain. Annoyingly handsome, curiously shy, and sodding brilliant to boot. Acquaintances by association they had always been. Nothing more. Just how things were supposed to be.

Life seemed to have other plans.

"When are you gonna tell him?"

" _Ideally_ , never. I could do the rest of my life without having that painfully awkward of a conversation."

"He has no idea?"

Rose shook her head. "No, he doesn't have a clue. Although, I suppose he'll find out soon enough... I mean, eventually, " she concluded with dread. "I'll have to suck up my pride and get money from him, for a termination draught. I won't have enough just by myself. It's nearly three-hundred galleons at most Apothecary shops. Maybe one-hundred fifty if I go to that shady one down in Knockturn Alley –"

"So you were completely serious then? When you said, you wouldn't even _consider_ keeping it. You know, there's other options besides just inducing a miscarriage –"

"Of course I was serious!" she closed her eyes for a moment, trying to push down the waves of tears threatening to creep up once more. "Ali, I can't keep this baby...You know that as well as I do. We're seventeen for Merlin's sake; we can barely bloody apparate ourselves, let alone be responsible for another human life!"

"But –"

"And we're not married – fucking hell, not even dating – let alone prepared to raise our unwanted, bastard child, together. In some tossed up family where both sets of grandparents hate it. No one even knows about us ever…. _happening_ those few times, other than you. My parents would quite literally murder me, bring me back to life, only to have me to watch them kill _him_. And bloody hell! Don't even get me started about what the Daily Prophet would publish. They'd have a field day."

"I suppose you're right about that part."

"There's hardly any option here. I'm not going to end up some bleeding statistic with a miserable life, raising the next heir to a death-eater fortune. I can't do it. I won't."

Ali smiled, maintaining the same overly kind and understanding expression Rose swore her best friend would give out regardless, even if she'd just confessed to murdering someone. "Alright. As long as it's what you actually want. You do have options. Even if they aren't the most pleasant seeming right now. I'll support you no matter what, Rose."

"You'd be the only one," she choked out. "I want this gone, forever. To never think about this monumental mistake ever again."

"Okay," She finally whispered in agreement. "Let me help you at least. I'll give you some money for the potion, and then we can–"

"Absolutely not!" Rose interrupted without allowing her friend to finish the crazy thought. "That would eat up your entire allowance for the rest of this term. Don't be ridiculous."

"I'd do it for you... it's just money."

"I know you would," Rose smiled meekly. "And I appreciate it …but no. Malfoy got me into this mess; he's damn well going to help me get out. The bloke probably has three hundred galleons just laying around in a bloody piggy bank somewhere anyway."

"What do you think he's gonna do after you tell him?"

Rose shrugged. "No idea. Probably freak the hell out; I can only imagine. At least my panic has come in waves. Gradually spaced out over the last five days while waiting for my never-arriving period to show up."

The brunette was silent, shaking her head and looking up at the redhead before she finally spoke. "I still can't believe you slept with him in the first place, Rose... After seven bloody years of constant rejection. Merlin, as if hooking up _one_ time wasn't bad enough. What was Halloween, again – the fourth?"

Actually, the fifth time (and sixth later on that following morning), but who was counting? Rose deemed it unnecessary to make the correction.

"Yes, I know. Thanks." Rose began pacing nervously. "Go ahead – judge some more. Lord knows, I do."

"I wasn't judging," she corrected. "Just trying to make sense of it all, I guess. I still haven't been able to."

"That's because there's no sense to be made!" Rose groaned with misery. "I was piss drunk, and he was there."

Ah, the classically used excuse of drunken boredom she had since told Ali was the root source of her past decisions regarding Scorpius Malfoy. Of course, there was some truth of the matter behind it. Their first initial encounter had been significantly fueled by pounding adrenaline off a Quidditch win against Ravenclaw, and a celebratory party in the Gryffindor common room.

"Tell him tonight," Ali suggested. "After dinner. Maybe even before then. The sooner, the better, I think."

"Tonight?" Rose grimaced at the mere thought. "I feel like that may be _too_ early... Hell, you know what, on second thought, I'll just ask McGonagall for permission to floo home and steal the money from my parents. It'll be far easier – "

"Rose," Ali gave out a knowing look, trying not to smile at Rose's unruly suggestion. "You have to tell him eventually. He deserves to know."

"I know that."

"So then why prolong the inevitable?"

"Right," Rose breathed with a heavy heart. " _The inevitable_."

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 **A/N: Hello everyone!**  
 **Good lord, I know it's been a long, LONG time since I've posted anything on here, but I've been working on this new story recently and wanted to share some of it with you.**  
 **I've never done a time-travel fic before, so we'll see how this all turns out… Just trying to get all the background info included for right now.**

 **Please forgive any type-o's which may be lurking around that I might've missed. I don't have a beta, and proof-reading is quite literally the bane of my existence. I do try, though.**

 **Thank you all for taking the time to read and (maybe?) review this! Let me know of any thoughts you might have; I do love to hear them. No matter how brief.**


	2. The Party

**A/N: This chapter is written entirely as a flashback (though I didn't want to italicize everything lol) to help with some build-up of the characters. And of course, to include some cute ScorRose moments in there as well ;P**

 **I've never written Scorpius and Rose in the same way I've done for this fic, so bear with me. Like I said before in the last chapter, very much Cursed Child-ish. Their personalities are way different than that of their parents, and you'll eventually see why.**

 **So without further ado: Thank you all for reading! Enjoy.**

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 _*BEGIN FLASHBACK*_  
 _3 October 2024_

"Just where exactly do you think you're going, Malfoy?"

She was drunk. Not quite plastered, but far past the point of merely tipsy. Her booming words felt as if they slurred together, although she was fairly sure they somehow managed to flow out with a surprising amount of coherency. All things considered, she felt relatively proud over the small accomplishment.

After exiting from the portrait hole, Rose slowly made her way down towards the halted figure, the boy immediately turning to face her demanding question. She prodded further, "Running off in such a hurry, are you? The party's not even started."

"Why do you care?"

"You!" His question went completely disregarded as she held up a finger and pointed in the boy's direction. "Bloody _YOU_ , Malfoy."

"What about me?"

"You think you can just crash a Gryffindor party, and then leave without so much as congratulating me on making the greatest – and most difficult, mind you – Quidditch goal this school has ever bloody-well seen? How incredibly rude."

"You want me to _congratulate_ you on making a quidditch goal?" Scorpius snorted, an unusual amount of tenseness dripping within his tone. "Seriously?"

"Seriously," she affirmed.

"How humble of you. As usual. Expecting every last soul to come up and kiss your arse tonight, more so than they already do normally. And for the record, I didn't 'crash' your precious party. Roxy invited Al and I both earlier today."

"Oh." Rose blinked. His words were harsher than expected, unlike the normal demeanor she'd grown accustomed to hearing from him over the years; he usually behaved much more docilely. Rose continued to stand nearby Scorpius at the bottom of the staircase, both waiting expectantly for the other to speak. She stood a single step higher, making them identical in height while clinging to the opposing banister from where he stood.

"Congratulations," the blond finally broke through their wordless silence. "You're a brilliant Quidditch player, Rose. Not that you ever needed me to tell you... I'm sure the rest of the school does an excellent job at that."

"What's your problem tonight, Malfoy?"

"What do you mean, _my_ problem?!" He glared as if thoroughly trying to understand her behavior. "You don't say a thing to me all night, and then follow me out of this dull party, just to hound me down and demand I praise your star-studded victory."

"I didn't mean –"

"Don't you have a room full of loyal followers eagerly waiting back there? Why do you even _care_ if I say anything to you?"

"Maybe I just wanted you to."

"Why?" he requested a logical explanation. "Did I miss the memo over us being friends now all of a sudden?"

Rose grimaced. He stood correct, as was so annoyingly typical for Scorpius Malfoy to be. In contrast, Rose's actions were more than uncharacteristic for the redheaded Gryffindor. Together with that night, she likely hadn't said a meaningful thing to him all year. In truth, they weren't friends. Not even close. Seeing as their social status, reputations, and hobbies differed so vastly, they hardly interacted whatsoever most days. The spoke in minor pleasantries whenever the rare occasion presented itself; they spoke not at all whenever it didn't. The pair resided at opposite ends of nearly every spectrum, so _fucking_ hell: why had she drunkenly trailed him from the common room with no better excuse other than, essentially, "maybe I wanted to"? Of course, she wanted to, but he didn't need to know that. He never needed to know that.

Rose could have kicked herself for being so bloody daft.

Admittedly, she had watched ever since he initially arrived at the party with Albus, no more than thirty minutes prior. He looked almost sad while leaving, and she wanted to understand why. She knew so little when it came to him and his mysteriously odd ways.

"So, can I help you with something?" his smooth voice interrupted her chaotic thoughts. "Or do you just want me to walk away now, and you can scurry back to your friends up there?"

"It's not even ten-thirty yet," she ignored his questions, replacing them with her own. "Why are you leaving so early? Where's Al?"

"He left already," Scorpius explained. "To go meet up with Violet Thomas. I guess he decided the night was better spent elsewhere, other than hanging around in your homely common room with a bunch of his drunken relatives."

"You're quite the cynical and moody drunk, aren't you?"

"I'm not even tipsy, actually."

"I saw you take that shot of Firewhisky earlier."

"Oh. My mistake," Scorpius quipped. "One ounce of liquor and I'm shit-faced. You're right."

Rose laughed despite herself, "How unbecoming of our head boy."

He scowled, "I'm perfectly sober. You on the other hand –"

"Am perfectly competent, thank you." She smirked back at him, quickly shifting the attention off herself. "You looked upset before. What happened?"

"Nothing. "

"You're leaving, though."

"Very well noted. Tell me, was there a point to this conversation again?"

"No. Not particularly."

"Alright," he shifted uneasily. "Well then. I guess I'll see you in class Monday –"

"No! Wait." She pleaded in a rush to make him stay. "Don't leave yet...I followed you out here because, well, um, I wanted to get away for a minute. I-I needed a break. From everything. I thought maybe you were doing the same."

"I see." Scorpius continued sarcastically, "All that admiration must get quite exhausting after a while, huh? Being one of the most popular girls in school and all."

"No." Rose snapped back, hardly even taking note to the sarcasm. "I'm not… Well. I-I mean, I don't know. I wouldn't say 'the most.'"

"Hmph," he expelled the scoff through closed lips, finally opening them to express his opinion. "Well, I would."

"You think it's strange that I'm out here?"

Rose bit her bottom lip. Despite the banter, she felt a comforting warmth spread throughout her body as he narrowed his questioning gaze. Perhaps it was from the liquor; maybe it was from him.

He was beautiful. Not in the conventional sense of the word; not like Rose's past boyfriends, or the professional Quidditch players she had so wistfully lusted after through much of her teenage years. Handsome in a way that made you question it. Question yourself. His skin was somehow paler than hers, his platinum blond hair sweeping cleanly over a set of dark gray eyes, their silvery-blue hue resembling that of an April thunderstorm. He had grown marvelously well into his once boyish features, with a pointed jawline looking virtually sharp enough to cut through steel and cheekbones high enough for a Russian supermodel to hold envy. Rose hated herself for even thinking so. She knew none of her friends would understand.

The racing thoughts were her best-kept secret. Rose never admitted them aloud; not to him, not to her friends, and sometimes, not even in the privacy of her own mind. She always pushed the mental images down. Her pride was far too great to succumb to such an embarrassing revelation.

After all, she was the one who had said _no_ , _never_ , and _keep bloody dreaming Malfoy._ She was the one who had looked that bleeding-heart, third-year boy, in the thunderstorm-hued eyes and stomped out whatever meaningless crush had prompted his innocent pining. Whatever spark (regardless how large or small) he once held, had long since burned out. At least she could only assume, considering their present situation of being nothing more than classmates. It was for the best.

Or so she told herself.

"A bit," He spoke back with honesty. "It's not every day you make a point to come up and talk to me."

She took a long pause. "Did tonight make you upset or something?"

"Because you're talking to me?"

"No," she corrected sloppily, speaking in slightly broken sentence fragments. "That your only friend ditched you. For one of the prettiest – somewhat trashy, though, honestly – girls in school. And you're left going back to your empty room. All alone. With no one. How sad. Does that make you sad?"

"Al is not my _only_ friend!" he spat back. "And of course not, why would I care?"

"I don't know. Are you jealous? Is that why you're running away? You're jealous and alone."

"Jealous?" Scorpius's eyebrows nearly shot up to his hairline. "In no way am I 'running away,' first of all… Second, as much as I thoroughly enjoy watching every last sodding seventh year get pissed out of their minds, some of us have things to do in the morning. I promised Madam Pomfrey I'd help her brew more Pepper-Up potion for the hospital wing tomorrow –"

"Bloody hell! _Saint_ _Scorpius_ , at it again." Rose scrunched her face theatrically. "I suppose there IS, by Merlin, some reason you made Head Boy after all. Go figure."

He pursed together his lips as if he were going to say something back, but remained silent for what felt like an eternity.

"Now, now, Malfoy. Stop with that face." She chimed without a moment's consideration before speaking her thoughts. "You're actually quite sexy with that bleeding pouty look plastered across your fat lips. Did you know that?"

The words uttered were not hers. Surely they couldn't be. They instead belonged to the four separate firewhisky shots Rose had downed within the hour, a celebratory reward over the one-hundred-point victory over Ravenclaw earlier that day.

Merlin, she needed help. Maybe just a sobering potion, but no she definitely needed help, too.

His help.

"Go back upstairs, Rose. To your dorm if at all possible." Scorpius's instructions followed a motioning of his head towards the fat lady's portrait. "You're drunker than I thought…"

"So?" She sneered playfully. "That doesn't make what I said untrue."

Even the dimly lit lighting of Hogwarts castle couldn't hide a bright red blush which crept up onto the blond's naturally cream-colored cheeks. "Yes. Well," he cleared his throat uncomfortably. "I'm fairly sure you wouldn't be saying it if you weren't completely sozzled right now."

"You're right; I probably wouldn't." The firewhisky decided it needed to speak once more. "But I'd still be thinking it."

Scorpius's expression froze, his eyes doing their best to read her unwavering gaze. "Let me walk you back up." He remained hesitant despite her telling look. "People are gonna start wondering where you've managed to wander off. Here, follow me –"

He gestured for her to head back up the long staircase, Rose's grasp quickly latching onto his own as an immediate reflex, her hands clinging to Scorpius's forearms before he was able to make much progress forward.

"Let them wonder," she instructed, pushing his arms back down towards his side and scooting closer. She questioned briefly what foreign reign had taken control of her overthrown logic, quickly deciding that she cared little regardless of what it was.

"What are you doing?"

"Whatever you want me to," Rose explained with spontaneity, asking the suggestive question. "Do you want me to leave, Malfoy…? Just tell me, yes and I will. Right now. I'll go upstairs, and you can go back to your room. _Alone_. Just say the word."

Scorpius contemplated his answer meticulously, seemingly trying to discern if she was, in fact, serious, or if a camera and a brood of laughing family members were about to jump out from the woodworks like some well rehearsed practical joke.

Rose asked again, her voice hardly above a whisper. "Do you want me to go?"

"No."

"Good." She leaned in before finally pulling the trigger on her imprudent action. "Me neither."

Scorpius had not even a seconds notice to react over her sentiments before Rose's lips came crashing down against his own, her arms snaking around his neck as they stood level with one another at the bottommost steps. It wasn't romantic. Hell, it wasn't even remotely charming. It was a drunken mess more so than anything. Chaotic and unprepared.

Rose was unsure if her kissing met up to the standards of merely adequate at that moment, let alone quality, but he seemed not to care. His lips soon took full control over the unexpected act, simply kissing her back regardless, deepening force with every renewing lip-fall.

Rose clung to his sturdy frame as they continued, feeling a hand run down along the curvature of her spine and trying to ignore the chill which followed alongside it. He smelled phenomenal. Wonderful and indescribably familiar of a scent, like brand new parchment, or Hogsmeade after the first snowstorm of winter. He tasted of spearmint mixed with sweetness, just like she'd secretly imagined he would.

Never before had Rose been kissed in such a way. He didn't attempt to sloppily shove his tongue down her trachea or grope aimlessly at her body with indecent intentions. His lips pressed down with a firmness which nearly left her lungs breathless, her lower portion desperately aching for the sensation never to stop. Rose's hands trailed down his chest with her fingers, his abdomen feeling much more muscular than she presumed it would. Due to a general lack of athleticism out of the bookish Slytherin, it was surprising; just like her actions, and just like his soft lips pressed upon hers. Shocking and wrong in the most incredible way. His movements felt the closest thing to perfection she'd ever experienced, and Merlin have mercy, they were still only snogging.

She shuttered to think what further endeavors would likely make her feel.

Rose silently cursed the inappropriate notion and her ridiculous, pointless crush on Scorpius Malfoy. She was naturally supposed to hate him; it was expected, after all. In a way she did. She hated him for being a better student than she. She hated him for getting the title of Head Boy, herself just remaining a lowly prefect. More so than anything, she hated his last name and everything attached to it.

Everything about him made her blood boil. This time, though, it was for far different reasons.

 _Gods_ , she wished he had drooled more. She wished his teeth had collided painfully with hers as their lips first locked with one another. She had hoped he'd eventually reach around to grab her arse, awkwardly stepping on her toes in the process. She wanted terrible. She wanted her stomach to churn with disgust over his breath; she wanted his actions to prove her concealed thoughts blatantly wrong. She wanted desperately never to think about kissing him again. Unfortunately, no such luck was hers.

Because at that moment, the only other thing she actually wanted, was him.

 _*END FLASHBACK*_

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 **I'm only a little evil for ending it right there… Next chapter will be back to the present drama at hand (unless I get enough people to requesting me to continue with this scene.)**  
 **Thanks again for taking the time to read. Please review!**


	3. I Want To

**A/N: (Please read!) As requested, a continuation of the previous flashback makes up the first half of this chapter** ; **P Holy hell, it ended up being way longer than I was initially anticipating. I had way too much fun writing this. Clearly...  
Again, I didn't want to do all italics, so the start/end of the scenes are clearly labeled. It eventually goes back to the present day about midway through.**

 **WARNING: A dash of smutty smut just to give a peak to how it all started. Feel free to skip over bits and pieces (or just the entire first section) if you're not cool with that.**

 **Enjoy!**

* * *

 _*BEGIN FLASHBACK*_  
 _3 October 2024  
10:49pm_

Rose's initial motives for the night never encompassed ending up in Malfoy's bedroom – getting snogged senseless by the Head Boy within his dormitory, after suggesting they move to a more discrete location than the Gryffindor stairwell. It wasn't part of her original plan: trailing him out from the common room, kissing him, _really_ kissing him, strolling up with him to the Head's Tower... None of it.

Then again, plans do change.

She made no heed to halt their rapidly progressing movements, actively pressing her chest against his as they stood kissing within the enclosed room.

Never before had Rose acted so unbelievably impulsive. It stereotyped the standard behavior of her (far more _adventuresome_ ) roommate Becca Harris, versus how Rose typically conducted herself. A far shot away from an innocent cherub she was; her past partners had all fallen into the category of former boyfriends as opposed to one-time meaningless hook-ups. She never once conceded to becoming _that_ girl. Desperate and impatiently willing to crawl in bed with a boy she held no significant ties to.

Yet another thing about to change that evening, it seemed.

Briefly, Rose questioned whether Scorpius's mind flickered with the same racing thoughts as did hers. Had _he_ done this before? Was it a regular occurrence in _his_ life? She assumed not, but then again – you never knew with some people. Was he an innocent angel, or a closeted man-slag with some secretive history she knew nothing of?

So many questions, none she dared verbally express.

She dug deep within her memory bank, trying to piece together any suppressed evidence over his prior relationship histories, drawing up more blanks than useful information. She knew he had dated Alicia Flint back in fifth year. He commonly hung around with Leah Zabini (labeled by Dom to be the biggest tart of their year), so she was a solid prospect. Maybe Veronica Smith, his fellow Slytherin prefect? It was so difficult to be certain: the towheaded boy never went around parading his conquests, as far as she'd witnessed. Perhaps that was an extraordinarily good thing.

Rose's doubts came to a screeching halt amidst the newfound sensation of Scorpius roughly biting down on her lower lip, his hand grazing across the arc of her waist before reaching its final resting spot. The dip of her back shivered beneath his fingertips, a familiar sensation rippling below her abdomen as a result of the tantalizing touch, and causing Rose to clench together her thighs with sudden torment. She whimpered lightly between his parted lips, the warmth overtaking logic as it so frequently does.

She melted into his embrace, grinning wildly with the knowledge that Scorpius hadn't a single clue of her body's immediate reaction. He had no idea of the effect he left on her. In contract, the impact on him was _far_ more evident and unmistakable; his need hard-pressed against the curvature between her upper thigh and hip bone, nearly begging Rose to be freed. Certainly, she wasn't one to deny such freedom, mindlessly reaching to grasp hold of his belt buckle before the blond reflexively seized her hand in his.

"Rose, wait," he breathed nervously as their lips separated. "We can stop, you know. We – er– we don't have to do this."

"I know that..." She reassured back with a nod of her head, "But I _want to_."

A look crossed over his handsome face which Rose almost anticipated to come alongside an articulated _"why, though,"_ yet he remained completely silent – simply blinking back through a dazed expression. She was thankful.

"You're drunk –"

"Am not."

"Yes. You are, though."

"No. I'm fine. Better than fine, actually," Rose insisted. "Please, don't make me spell this out for you, Malfoy. I. Want. To."

"Yeah, you say that now, but I doubt you still will come tomorrow morning –"

"You don't know that!" Rose declared, feeling the blood she knew to have rushed away from her cranial region abandon what little filter she retained. "Fuck, Malfoy. For once in your life, can you just stop overanalyzing things?"

She rambled with a false sense of confidence, her voice somehow regaining the ability to speak unified sentences.

"Because honestly, yes. I'll want to then; just like I want to now. Hell, I'll probably want to Monday morning, too! Sitting in Potions while looking at your stupid bleeding face the entire time... The same way I wanted to last Tuesday – throughout that ridiculous prefect's meeting while listening to your annoying sodding voice the whole night. A few sips of firewhisky isn't going to change _that_ much. Believe me. I wouldn't be here if I didn't, er, well, uh… _want to."_

Rose stammered through the last part. Godric have mercy. What the fuck had she just said? It probably would've just been easier to lay out naked on his desk and scream "shag me" at the top of her lungs...

She felt pathetic.

Scorpius's jaw sat nearly slammed to the ground, his brows perched up, and his eyeballs massive. He looked speechless, and she really couldn't blame him. She hardly believed the words, herself, and she was the one who spoke them.

Rose continued quickly before letting him reply, blurting out further, "Look, stop overthinking this. Not everything has to be complicated as brewing Polyjuice Potion. You're not taking advantage of me. I promise. No one ever has to kno –"

She couldn't even finish the _thought_ , nonetheless speech.

 _Bloody hell._

He apparently needed no further reassurance, Rose's words being cut off abruptly by the set of lips which came crashing down upon hers without warning. Scorpius's embrace was restored, together with a surge of newfound heated forcefulness. He kissed her, opened mouthed and roughly, flicking his tongue playfully against hers as he simultaneously grabbed fistfuls of red hair; egging on every provocative whimper she tentatively let escape from the back of her throat. It felt sensational.

She walked without breaking their sudden kiss, the Gryffindor back-stepping until she felt her body crash against a piece of furniture located alongside the room's creme colored wall. A horizontal mahogany dresser occupied the space– Rose's arse soon hoisted upon the bureau's sturdy frame, her legs instinctively opening to allow Scorpius settlement between them. She sat comfortably atop the wooden dresser as he stood before her, their bodies pressed together.

Rose tugged at the blond's gray jumper, actively watching as he lifted the article of clothing away from his torso and lazily tossed it to the floor. She retracted away, giving Scorpius a once over, and allowing her eyes unprecedented access to his chest for a few short moments. He was more fit than she'd imagined those embarrassing number of times; with pale skin a shade of white ivory, the faintest sketch of muscle tone, and an outlined V which dipped beneath the hem of his trousers – imploring her to what lay below.

Scorpius's actions mimicked with equal swiftness, Rose's cardigan soon ripped frantically from her shoulders, and the blue blouse she'd worn that night promptly coming to lay motionless on the floor. She sharply inhaled as he reached around to unhook her bra, the undergarment slowly pulled away from her chest and swiftly castoff without further thought.

The Slytherin proceeded keenly, cupping her naked breast with one hand while a second reached up to stroke the flushed skin of her cheek, his mouth still devouring hers with every passing second.

She let out a whimper of delight as his thumb flicked across her hardened nipple, playing and toying mercilessly for a moment before allowing a second hand to come down and rest in-between their effortlessly aligned bodies. He unhooked the top button of her jeans; the denim material thoughtlessly disregarded after she'd gladly shimmied out of its bonds. He didn't waste a single moment; slipping a hand underneath the lacy black knickers she still wore, he playfully traced a finger along her slit, guiding his movements downward before inserting a single digit inside her wetness, eliciting a shock wave to pulsate between them.

Rose tossed her head back and let out a hoarse moan, relishing in the amazing sensations flooding below her navel. Adding a second finger, he continued – pressing and stroking the most sensitive spots in-between her tight walls as her legs instinctively opened farther. She clung to him, her body needing more with every passing moment.

" _Oh gods_ ," she groaned, biting down to stifle the betraying sounds escaping her lips.

"Christ Rose," Scorpius purred into her ear, his lowered voice enough to make her shudder, the continued movements nearly sufficient to make her come undone within his opened palm.

His lust laden eyes skimmed over Rose's body as she withered within his clutch. Her hips bucked from the responses which his fingers teasingly provoked, his lips coming down to brush gently with hers before whispering, "You're fucking beautiful, you know that?"

"No," she shook her head, biting back another moan before shoving her hand flat against his bare chest, and uttering the breathy word. " _You_."

The look he gave to her was one she'd never seen before out of any boy she'd been with; his hooded expression so dark and primal even her convoluted fantasies couldn't have possibility envisioned it.

Before able to speak another word, Scorpius forced both Rose's legs around his waist, guiding her hands to rest upon his shoulders for necessary support. Without even the slightest bit of warning, he lifted her effortlessly from the dresser's flat surface – a hand cupped below either thigh while walking the short distance over towards his bed. He cradled the redhead as she clung to his supporting frame.

She let out an involuntary squeal of glee, legs clenching tightly around him as they walked. The combined feeling of her figure crashing across the soft mattress – silky bedsheets pooling around her almost bare-cladded frame – mixed with the weight of his body coming to press down which such forceful intent, was enough to drive Rose entirely mad.

Hooking two fingers underneath a section of lace knickers, he slid off the remaining fabric; nothing left as lingering cover except grey eyes upon her naked body. She smiled at his expression. He gazed at her like he'd just uncovered some rare and unattainable jewel – his darkened eyes glossed over with a lustful drive as he watched with enchantment.

"You're wearing too many clothes right now, Malfoy."

Her words were teasing, but her hands held purpose. She reached down between them, wrapping her fingers around Scorpius's belt once more, and violently tugging at the impeding object. He willingly obliged, pulling back from her embrace and standing to undo the top section of his trousers. Rose watched with fascination, her eyes descending past the blond's happy trail once the slacks were unzipped and removed finally –allowing finally for his cock to spring free from its prior constraints.

Rose bit down roughly, almost drawing blood from her lower lip as a trying effort not to appear overly enthusiastic through the shameless ogling. The efforts were likely in vain; her blue eyes locking upon the spot just south of his blond curls, an eager look plastered upon her reddened face. Never before has she ached for anything so bad.

" _Ortus imperium."_

The redhead breathed a sigh of appreciative relief for Scorpius, and his far more rational thinking than hers, thankful he remembered the charm as a preventative measure.

Rose practically whimpered with anticipation as the bed creaked under Scorpius's added weight atop her own; the blond soon cradled between her open thighs. She allowed her hands to drag themselves down his chest, dipping below his abdomen and grazing her fingertips playfully across his length before fully grasping hold and stroking it gently.

"Fuck," he grunted loudly, squirming over the touch. She beamed with satisfaction, the pleasure exuding from his twisted facial expression making Rose grown furthermore impatient.

Rose's breath caught suddenly as Scorpius shifted positions. He poised his cock at the base of her entrance, taking a moment to look down as if waiting expectantly for some last-minute protest. She made no such objection, giving back a reassuring expression as if to signal him onward.

He proceeded gently, sinking himself into her heat without further delay, their bodies gliding together with natural ease. Her nails violently dug into the blond's pale skin, a loud moan escaping as she felt herself stretch to willingly accommodate his girth.

"Fuck! _Scorpius_ , please," She begged with torment as he waited, unmoving once inside, to allow her adjustment over his size.

"What did you just call me?"

She could practically feel his lip turn up into a smirk, his voice trembling in the same breathy tone hers did.

" _Malfoy_ ," she corrected hastily, attempting to move up against him and supply herself with the desired friction.

He teased, leaning down, and skimming her collarbone with kisses, "No, you didn't." His hands seized Rose's hipbones to keep them from bucking impatiently, remaining completely motionless while staring into her hungry eyes. He was tormenting her and enjoying every second of it.

"Did so," Rose argued. She was going to murder something out of anticipation. Likely him.

"Liar."

"Prat," she squealed, heatedly clawing at the Slytherin's chest and feeling herself throb with frustration around his static body.

"Say it again," he demanded huskily, his fingerprints leaving marks as they tenderly moved up and down her torso.

"No! _Oh_ –" She pointlessly refused, letting out further betraying sounds as he inched himself the slightest bit deeper. She silently cursed, thinking up a short list of hexes she would throw out his way for putting her through such intentional torment.

"What was that?"

"Bloody git…" She weakly caved into her body's desperation. Her head tucked against his shoulder. Her voice nothing more than a breathy murmur. _"Scorpius_."

He beamed down before placing his forehead to hers tenderly. Satisfied at last, he complied with Rose's pleading wishes – their bodies soon forcefully crashing together in unison with one another as she yelped out with relief. And again.

He felt phenomenal moving within her; a mixture of dynamic friction and rapid strokes causing the redhead to grasp fistfuls of emerald silk sheets within both hands. Her noises were loud and uninhibited, crying out in with each quickening thrust.

"Yes! Gods, yes! _Scorpius_!"

"Fuck, Rose."

For that moment, she cared little about anything other than the sensations. The perfect way that he filled her like no one before could. She wanted the feelings to last forever; she wanted the reckless desire which guided them to be enough. For those fleeting moments, it was.

She knew afterward it would be so entirely different.

His groans were soft; primal and animalistic in a way which spurred her body's responses. His face etched with desire and a thin layer of perspiration coating across his forehead as he plunged into her with vigor so strong it nearly reverberated within her stomach.

She wanted it to last forever, although she knew it never could. Fleeting, temporary moments of bliss. She knew that's all it ever was.

Rose felt the familiar sensations build within her core, her body keen and close to becoming unraveled completely beneath him. Her moans quickly turned into pleading sighs of expectation.

Scorpius took the hint. He leaned back without reducing the speed of his continued thrusts, reaching in-between their bodies to brush against her aching clit; the tender spot feeling as if it might explode over every soft touch provided.

The circular motions rendered by his fingertips were enough to shove her forcefully over the edge. Rose's body burst into a fit of mind-altering tremors, clenching violently around him as she cried out in ecstasy, feeling a magnitude of endorphins flood every square inch of her insides with the phenomenal release.

The tensing of her walls quickly pushed him in the same direction. His climax soon followed; the blond groaning out Rose's name with passionate yearning as he drove into her one last final time. Once drained completely, he slid from within her and collapsed atop the mattress as they both laid wordless – panting for air.

They ended up tangled within a messy embrace, laying against each other without any conscious forethought as their bodies slowly came down from the high. The pair remained silent for what felt like hours, their bodies still breathless and damp with perspiration.

Rose's eyes fluttered shut with fatigue; a spinning sensation, she wasn't quite sure was from firewhisky or the lingering forces of her orgasm, fluttering throughout her head. Whichever it was, her body soon followed - Rose effortlessly drifting towards a deep slumber, buried comfortably within the warm embrace of Scorpius Malfoy.

 _*END FLASHBACK*_

* * *

 _20 November 2024_

"Rose...?"

 _Why me? Why not someone else?_ _Someone else that wouldn't get disowned._ _Someone else that wouldn't get their name plastered across the Daily Prophet in shameful disgrace. Someone else who might even want this. Victorie's been trying nearly a year._

"...Rose."

 _It was my fault. Everything that's happened... It's been my fault since the start. Godric, I'm such a blithering idiot_ –

"ROSE!"

"Huh? What was that?"

Dominique Weasley looked personally insulted by the question. "Did you hear a word I just said?"

"Er – no," Rose admitted sheepishly, willing her dancing thoughts back into focus. She had been trying to listen, but her cousin's nagging words from across the room weren't nearly enough to hold her immediate attention, given the current circumstances consuming her mind.

The cauldron with fuschia colored pregnancy test potion had long since been cleaned up and stowed away; Rose's other two roommates having returned to the castle after their all-day outing spent in Hogsmeade. The four Gryffindor girls now loitered lazily in their dorm room on the quiet Saturday evening, her roommates speaking avidly amongst themselves about some mundane conversation topic, as usual. The last one Rose held even relative focus on was regarding eyelash extending charms. Exhilarating.

It was proving impossible for Rose to think about anything except the living proof of regretful decisions growing underneath her orange Chudley Cannons' t-shirt. The feelings of nausea one moment, mixed with desires to devour the entire great hall during the next. How was that possible when she wasn't even a full month along yet? Rose concluded once more – the universe was punishing her.

Her body felt exhausted, and her mental fatigue levels weren't doing much hotter. She was thankful for Ali (and her ability to confide in the girl about everything) but keeping such a massive secret from her other two best friends would unquestionably be a challenging task. They had vowed to complete and utter secrecy regarding the matter, _especially_ towards anyone with Weasley clan blood-relation. She'd rather get trampled by a heard of trolls than have her family find out what a pathetic joke her life had become.

And to think - She thought hiding her nights with Scorpius were bad enough.

Dominique rolled her eyes dramatically. "I _said_ , I got you some chocolates from Honeydukes. So you can stop stealing my stash now."

Rose matched Dominque's prior eye roll, shooting it right back. "That was one bloody time."

"It was literally two days ago, Rose."

"Hmpf," the redhead muttered as Dominque walked across the room, holding out a bag from Honeydukes towards her. Rose graciously took the item, digging within the bag's contents, and pulling out the first thing she laid hands on. A chocolate frog. It might as well have been solid gold.

"Too bad you guys missed out today." Dominique spoke both to Rose and Ali, sprawling back across her bed and affirming with a smile, "It was fun."

Ali didn't even make an effort to glance up from the novel within her grasp. Rose remained equally as silent, mindlessly shoving her face with the new sweets she'd received. Neither much wanted to speak about how terrible their Saturday had been, considering a full day of manually scrubbing toilets probably would've included more joy.

Rose sloppily muttered though chocolaty bites, "There's always next weekend I guess. What happened?"

"Connor brought Dom a sky-blue rose from Madam Ashcraft's Florists," Their other roommate Becca Harris, a pretty muggle-born with jet black hair and dark brown eyes, announced from her side. "Said it reminded him of her eyes. It was so adorable."

"It was not _adorable_." Dominque's face flashed with annoyance over the subject, frowning at the black-haired girl. "It was pathetic. Desperate, if you ask me. He just won't listen! I'm finished. Done. Once and for all."

"So she says," Becca sneered, still looking over at Ali and Rose, a doubtful expression on her face. "Give it a week."

Rose stifled a laugh at the mention of Dominique and Connor Finnigan's on-again-off-again relationship. She finally spoke up with her opinion, "Yeah Dom, she's right you know. Just admit it – you're gonna end up married to that bloke one day."

"No! Absolutely not! Not in a thousand years," the blonde crinkled her nose.

"Alright. Keep thinking that..." Becca laughed.

Dominique looked at Rose, immediately shifting the attention away from herself, and onto some seemingly juicy gossip demanding to be shared. "Oh! Merlin. I almost forgot to tell you, though!" She paused dramatically. "Guess who we saw Roxy eating lunch with today at The Hog's Head?"

"Oh my god!" Becca's large eyes nearly bulged from her head over the very mention. She supplied further, "Eating lunch, making googly- eyes at, and sitting in very, very close proximity to, mind you."

"Who?"

"Guess," Dominique giggled.

"Erm..." Rose contemplated briefly before answering. "That annoying boy from her house? The one who used to charm little love messages into her stew back during dinnertime. What's his name? Joffrey or something?"

"Worse," Dominique insisted. "Way worse. "

"Okay, no. Not worse than _that_ bloke," Becca disagreed. "Joffrey's stranger than a three-legged Hippogriff. And even uglier than one!"

"Fine. Not worse than _him_ ," Dominque admitted. "But still, weird as hell."

"Hmmm," Rose thought for a moment. "Is he in Ravenclaw or no?"

"No," both girls answered back simultaneously.

"And he's in our year?"

"Yup."

"I don't know," Rose admitted while shrugging, still maintaining a healthy curiosity over such event. Her scholarly and frequently well-reserved cousin had never been the type to go boy-crazy over much of anyone. Roxanne Weasely took little interest in schoolyard dating or meaningless broom-cupboard flings. The angel of the family, at least in comparison to all their other less-than-innocent relatives. Perhaps that was the main reason Roxy held the coveted title of Head Girl while Rose instead sat in bed, concealing an accidental pregnancy, and shoving her face with yet another chocolate frog.

How sad.

"Jackson Rivers?" Rose guessed one more, referencing the handsome Hufflepuff prefect in their year.

"I wish!" Dominque gushed, her eyes sparkling over the very mention. "I've even told her before; they'd be stinking adorable together."

"He's precious!" Becca shook her head. "But no, it wasn't him."

"Fine. I give up! Are you going to tell me, or do I have to name every seventh year in this bloody castle first?"

Dominique smiled at Rose's usual sass before leaning over the edge of her bed, hissing in a hushed undertone:

"Scorpius. Fucking. Malfoy _._ "

 _"WHAT?!"_

Rose exclaimed, choking violently on the mouthful she was in the process of swallowing, and coughing frantically to prevent herself from fully asphyxiating by means of a half-chewed chocolate frog. She wasn't entirely sure if the lump which lodged in her throat was from inhaled candy or the words Dominique had just uttered. It was likely the later.

"I know!" Dominique exclaimed, an obvious interpretation Rose's actions being solely an agreement of equal shock. "That's exactly what I said!"

"Rose, you have to chew those you know!" Becca grimaced as Rose reached for the water on her bedside table. "You can't just swallow them whole."

"Thanks for that," Rose gasped, glaring over towards the muggle-born girl after using water to manually force the object down her throat. "I didn't realize."

"Clearly," drawled the part-Veela.

"I mean, I suppose it makes sense," Becca spoke with regards to the former subject, looking over at Dominique and ignoring Rose's violent scowl. "They _are_ Head Boy and Girl together. It's almost expected, really."

Rose noticed Ali's eyes having become completely unglued from the book she held poised within her lap, attentive towards the conversation at hand between Dominque and Becca. Rose sat utterly still, wondering to herself whether a person's day truly could get any worse.

Probably not.

"Yes, but it's Malfoy," the blonde droned. "Out of all the available guys in school?"

"I mean, maybe she likes him?" suggested Becca.

"Why, though?"

"I dunno," The dark haired girl shrugged, supplying so casually, "He's smart. Top marks for our entire year next to hers. They probably have a lot in common."

"Do they really, though?"

"He's kinda cute, too. In a weird way."

Dominique apparently disagreed, "Cute?" She repeated. "Are you being serious? That boy's so pale he probably glows in the dark."

Becca giggled mischievously, "Could come in handy during certain situations, I guess."

The blonde narrowed her eye slits, "…what in the world is that supposed to imply?"

"I'm just saying, maybe he's not all bad."

"No," Dominique accepted. "He's fine. Just not fine for Roxy."

Becca urged, "He's tall at least."

"So is Hagrid," said Dominique.

"Maybe he's got a huge knob or something?" Becca bit back laughter. "I feel like it's always the tall, skinny ones who –"

"STOP! GROSS!" Dominque made noises to go along with her vocalized disgust. "Good lord! Uck! No. Roxy's a virgin anyway. Not like she would _know_."

Becca snorted. "You sure about that? She's practically been living with him for months now. They share a bloody common room."

Merlin have mercy; Rose wanted to Avada herself on the spot. And puke... Mainly just puke. She maintained her silence while the two girls continued.

Becca sighed, "We could have just asked her about it earlier. _But no_... Someone didn't want to."

"I was not about to walk up and interrupt _that_ ," Dominique argued. "Whatever _that_ was."

"Psh," Becca scoffed. "You and Rose, and your petty ass hatred towards Malfoy. Sure, the blokes a bit… odd. Weird, annoying, a loser, whatever. But I swear, both of you look at him like he's the spawn of Satan."

Rose gulped.

Dominique disagreed, "We do not!"

"Do so."

"Fine. And you don't?"

Becca shrugged, "No. Not really."

"You just don't get it, that's all." Dominque sighed, shaking her head while attempting to explain. "Your parents are muggles. You didn't grow up surrounded by all the stories –about the war – about the blood prejudice that families like Malfoy's carry around... _Still there_ , even now. Just evolved into something way more hidden. You don't dissolve centuries worth of hatred with the wave of a wand and a few anti-discrimination laws. Could you imagine?" The blonde was now looking directly at Rose. "Uncle George's face if Roxy brought home _a Malfoy_? Merlin, it's bad enough Albus is friends with him. But I think Grandpa might have an aneurysm if our families had to be permanently conjoined with _…that_ , forever."

"You're so dramatic Dom," Becca groaned. "And shit, maybe she likes it. Forbidden love and all that rubbish –"

"When you say, 'sitting close together,'" Rose's voice cut in without warning, finally requesting the much-needed clarification. "What exactly does that mean?"

"It means they were sitting next to each other."

Rose glared at her cousin's dim response. "Yeah, figured that part out myself. Thanks, genius. I meant were they holding hands? Kissing? What?"

"Oh. No," Dominique clarified, shaking her head. "Hell no. Not that we saw. But we left pretty soon after seeing them together, so I don't really know. It just seemed suspicious to me… you should ask her about, Rose. She's closest to you after all."

"Yeah," Rose affirmed wearily. "Maybe I will."

Ali shot Rose a knowing glance. It became more and more evident as the day went on that she would be making an unavoidable trip up to the Head Boy and Girl's tower before the night was entirely through. Which dorm would end up being her destination, though, was still yet to be known...

* * *

 **A/N: Hmmm, which room do you guys think? xD  
Thank you all so much for reading and please drop a review below. You'll be so very loved.**


	4. I'm sorry

Scorpius Malfoy hadn't even made it through two sentences of his transfiguration essay before a quiet knock at the door interrupted his thoughts. Startled, he set down his quill atop the oak desk occupying one corner of his dormitory and stood up to answer its faint call. Crossing over the rug, he briefly questioned who on earth could be beckoning him so late in the evening without prior notice; his answer immediately becoming clear as he swung open the heavy castle door to behold a female figure standing there tensely.

"...Hello."

A flicker of annoyance ignited as he stared into the pair of bright blue eyes which emerged behind the open doorframe.

The girl gazing back at him stood pale, her face whitened and coated with distress as if she'd just witnessed a dementor attack on some helpless puppy within the Hogwarts corridors moments prior. She looked a mix of anxious and frightfully tired – his own face likely taking mimic to hers. His lips pursed together into a frown before verbalizing any reply.

Rose Weasley was the last person he expected to see that Saturday evening.

An unnerving urge to slam the large wooden door square in her face was his initial contemplation, but he willfully rejected such immature impulses. Scorpius refused to allow himself that type of behavior; so completely childish and irrational. He refused to stoop down to her level.

" _Hi_."

He knew the word sounded equally as cold as it felt leaving his tongue. The redhead's face turned down into an even larger grimace after suffering such an unfriendly welcome, though she didn't hesitate or back down.

She merely prodded further, "Are you busy?" Her eyes peered over his shoulder, seemingly anticipating another individual inside the room.

"No."

"Oh. Good," exhaled Rose maintaining a healthy regard to her breathing, almost appearing as if she willed herself to continue taking steady lungfuls of air. She nervously glanced back down the small stairwell which led up from the Head's common room and requested, "Can I come in then?"

He knew exactly why she asked. She didn't want Roxy to suddenly appear at the entryway and witness herself in such a frightfully compromising position; heavens forbid anyone saw Rose Weasely standing at _his_ doorstep. No, that just wouldn't do for Gryffindor's golden girl.

He almost declined, but once more restrained such a childish response.

"Was there something I can help you with?" Scorpius asked coolly. "I already told you – I'm not changing your prefect patrol on Wednesday for that bloody Quidditch practice. You're gonna have to find someone to switch with you –"

"No!" she exclaimed frantically. "I-I mean, no. That's – er – that's not why I'm up here… Look, please Malfoy. Can I just come in for a minute? It's important... Really. I wouldn't be here if it weren't."

He softened a bit at her delicate face, coated with lines of genuine upset, and forcing him to finally give way. Scorpius lowered his shoulders and let out a heavy sigh; removing his barricading stance from the entrance, he ushered her inside.

Rose warmly smiled back. Despite the distraught expression plastered across her appearance, she somehow looked flawless as ever. Her long hair was pulled into a high ponytail, red curls falling from its confines and framing her pretty face in the same appealing way they always managed to.

Damn her to hell for it.

The pair wordlessly sauntered inside the large dormitory together, and Rose crossed her arms; her big eyes looking downward towards the ornate marble floor –fixated on a single square patch of the decorative rug as if its carpet fibers would magically give her insight over what to say.

Apparently, they didn't.

They both stood face to face, avoiding each other's awkward glances, and swimming in the nervous tension flowing between them. Scorpius waited – surely _he_ wasn't going to speak first. He was unsure what Rose wished to talk with him about, though could only assume it was something either remarkably trivial or idiotically pointless.

"Are you still mad at me?" She blurted out, finally breaking through the tension and immediately adding more through means of her edgy inquiry. "For...um...well, about the way I,…er – _ended things_?"

Idiotically pointless it was.

"No, of course not... If I remember correctly," protested Scorpius matter-of-factly. "According to you– there wasn't anything _to end_ in the first place."

She outwardly cringed at his answer, taking a deep breath before pleading, "Yes, _but_ \- "

"Wasn't that what you said? 'Nothing lost, nothing gained,' or some rubbish like that?"

"I –"

"If you're here to make sure I haven't gone and blabbed my mouth to anybody," Scorpius snapped. "Save your breath. I haven't told a single soul... Not like they'd believe a word of it anyway."

"Look." Rose fidgeted nervously, looking down at her feet as if she were avoiding something major. "I didn't come here to fight –"

"Then why the bloody hell would you ask an idiotic question like that?"

"I..." she stuttered. "I-its just... well, you seem angry still."

He snorted, "And you all of a sudden care, do you? How odd."

Rose insisted, "I just thought, um, maybe you wanted to talk about it?"

"There's nothing to talk about."

"Malfoy, you know that's not true."

"I think you've made your viewpoints crystal clear already," he declared with a venomous tone. "Unless you've managed to change your mind once more, for the sixteenth time."

"...No," She muttered sounding a bit hurt. "Please, I never meant for things between us to end up like this."

"Really now?" He could feel himself growing angry. He didn't want to have the same pointless argument again, though it felt nearly inevitable. The words begged to be spoken. "I find that hard to believe."

Her dull response was one he'd heard before, "I never meant for it to get as far as it did–"

He didn't even allow her a finishing word. "And what the hell is that supposed to mean, anyway!? _'As far as it did'_? As if it was just some massive mix up that you had no control over."

"Of course not! B-but we agreed it was just purely for fun!" Rose countered back defensively. "I don't know what you want me to say. I-I don't know what _to_ say, honestly. I feel terrible about it all... I was so drunk that first night and I –"

"No," Scorpius spat out. "No, you don't get to use that bullshit excuse with me. Save it for Longbottom, or whoever else you went running your mouth too – hiding behind such a pathetic _lie_. It's not like I tricked you into anything, right? You knew what you were doing, and you knew EXACTLY how you wanted things to turn out. Always in your favor, as usual, no?"

"No –!"

" – As if sleeping with somebody FIVE BLOODY TIMES equals out to being some temporary lapse in judgment you can totally disregard and forget about. I mean, I suppose whatever helps you sleep at night... _Fine_. But if you're gonna go parading around this castle, pretending like it never happened, pretending like _I_ don't even exist, you can sod the hell off –"

" _Six times_ ," whispered the redhead underneath a shaky breath.

It was strange to see Rose Weasely behave in such a fashion; so timid and unsure of herself.

He huffed, "What?"

"Six times," Rose stated a bit more confidently, looking directly up at him while speaking. "It was six times – not five."

"Humpf," he murmured. "Well, whatever it was – obviously it wasn't important enough to warrant you saying more than three whole sentences to me over the last two weeks... Merlin forbid anyone sees us talking. Might raise suspicions. But oh wait... don't worry. Get a few shots of firewhisky down the hatch, and you'll snog me right outside your bleeding common room where absolutely _ANYONE_ could have walked out and seen. You know, you're quite literally the most selfish and infuriating –"

" _I'm sorry."_

Rose's voice choked out the two words as if she'd just recited a page-long monolog. Tired and shaky, she met his heated glare, looking the most pitiful Scorpius had ever seen the witch.

"I'm so fucking sorry, Scorpius." She bit her lip roughly, and not in the usual suggestive way that he'd grown accustomed to seeing. It looked like she was strenuously holding back tears. "You're right. I'm a mess, truly. I am. And I'm sorry. I'm sorry for those things I said. I'm sorry if I hurt you, I never meant to–"

"I think you should leave now," advised Scorpius as the two maintained their distant bearings on opposite sides of the dorm. " If all you came to do was clear your weighing conscious, just go already. I'm over it. I'm done talking about it. For good. Get the hell out of my room."

"No," she shook her head. "I can't."

"You can't what?"

"I can't leave," she heaved.

"Rose, I swear to fucking Salazar himself, I'm not doing this again –"

"No," spat back Rose. "I didn't mean like that!"

The tears were there alright; welling up and threatening to fall, Scorpius could see them even from their segregated stance across the room. Her next question was almost as confusing as the first, his eyebrows shooting up from the unexpected proposal.

"Are you seeing Roxy?" challenged Rose.

"Am I... _what!_?"

"Seeing Roxy?" she choked back plainly, though it looked like she had much more to say. "Dom told me she saw you today. Together. Are you two seeing each other? Y-you can tell me."

So this is what she was on about. She had the audacity to come inside his room, purely to ask if he was seeing someone other than her? As if she gave a rats arse.

"Maybe," He lied, knowing full well his answer would infuriate the stubborn and hardheaded Gryffindor. "I mean if Dom said so...must be true. We're all aware how much you listen to every single moronic thing your friends tell you after all –"

"Just fucking say it! Yes or no?"

"Why do you care?"

"I-I don't care if you _are_ , it's jus –"

He smirked, "Then why'd you ask?"

"Because I deserve to know!"

"You don't deserve shit," Scorpius vehemently argued. "It's none of your business, one way or another."

"It _is_ my business, actually!" Her words grew angrier by the second.

"Why?"

"Because!" she shrieked. "She's my cousin!"

"So? What are you going to do if I am?" he sneered back. "Why should I even bother telling you anything –"

"BECAUSE! _"_ Rose screamed like a raging banshee; causing Scorpius to nearly jump out from his skin at her furious exclamation. He took a full step backward as an involuntary reflex, not even possessing a verbal reaction to give back. He just stood there dumbly – blinking as the usually so perfect and well-poised girl began slowly falling apart at the seams.

"Because," her next word choked out – a polar opposite sound than that of the volatile scream she'd just reverberated throughout the four walls they stood within.

 _"I'm so sorry."_

She repeated the pointless apology once more, entirely crumbling right before his very eyes.

Rose cried. It started off slow, simple sniveling she attempted to conceal by looking down at the floor instead of upwards at him. The Gryffindor moved a hand to brush away the noticeable wetness from her reddened cheeks, her effort proving futile within mere moments as the floodgates fully opened. Her real cries soon began; soft whimpers that she couldn't mask filling the silence separating them, the sound torturing him like nails gliding across a chalkboard.

"Rose…" Scorpius tried, striving to reach for something, _anything,_ which he could say to make the blubbering tears stop. She was making it impossible to remain angry; precisely the thing he wanted to avoid. He wanted to be furious. He wanted to make her storm out in a heated fit of rage. She didn't deserve his pity – yet there it was. Pity and lingering emotion he felt towards the girl who had ripped his heart out with her bare hands more times than he could even count.

Why did she have to look so bleeding pathetic while she cried?

Her soft whimpers had inadvertently morphed themselves into violent sobs; walking over to his bed she plopped down on one corner, hunched over, and buried her face within her open palms. She wept furiously– for what, he was unsure. None of it made any sense. Though with Rose Weasely, it rarely did.

Merlin, she was the most contradictory and complicated person he'd ever met in his life.

"Rose, stop! Please," he begged. "Look – I'm not dating Roxy. We're friends. Swear to it; we're not together... Er – I'm sorry? Please stop crying, alright? ... I-I' m just confused what you want! Dammit, Rose! What the hell do you want from me? All you do is say one thing, and then do another; it's fucking maddening! Why are you so upset right now –"

"Do you remember Halloween?" she feebly questioned in-between sobs, her wet eyes looking into his.

"I –er – yes? I do," he admitted, breaking away from the sight of her. "Why?"

Of course, he remembered Halloween. Slytherin threw a party he'd begrudgingly been dragged to by Albus, going only to appease the nagging requests of his friend; as was the standard for his stereotypically dull social life...It was the same way he'd ended up in Rose's common room almost a month beforehand, too. He nearly strangled Al that night for leaving him alone with those sodding prideful Gryffindors. With Rose.

Both nights had ended the same.

She hiccupped faintly, "D-do you remember the morning after Halloween?"

He tried not to.

"Yes."

"Well..." Her response made his heart plummet to the floor. "We messed up."

"What do you mean?"

She roughly exhaled, appearing to be desperately trying to compose her thoughts into words, and words into verbal statements. The declaration she finally settled on was straightforward and to the point, leaving Scorpius's mouth to hang open in total shock.

" _I'm pregnant."_

* * *

 **A/N: Yes, I'm evil for drawing that out so much, and then leaving you with a horrendous cliffhanger. I know. Do forgive me ;)**

 **Thanks so much for reading! I appreciate all the reviews, follows and favorites. You guys are awesome!**


	5. Revelations

_"I'm pregnant."_

Rose decided there were probably better methods to announce a pregnancy than the technique she used.

After all – with a family the size of her own – she'd heard of all the sickeningly _cute_ ways it could be done. Writing little poems and attaching them to a positive pregnancy test, sticking hamburger buns inside an oven to unveil a secret message hidden within; even letting the family dog parade around the house in a bloody knitted sweater that said "big brother" on it.

 _Yikes._

However, the adorable instances only applied to wanted pregnancies and alas, she had none of those things. An oven, a dog, or a single shred of patience left to even _think_ about telling Scorpius in a fashion that didn't include nearly giving him respiratory arrest in the process. Rose figured no direct preparation was needed, considering the pregnancy would maintain such a brief existence, to begin with.

Perhaps she should have thought things through a bit more.

Her initial plan had been simple: immediately after he opened the door, she would say it. Blurt out the truth, flood their terrible mistake into the open, and take whatever horrified reaction she got. Afraid (if she beat around the bush) she'd lose her nerve, and become tangled within an even worse predicament entirely.

Too right she was. Her nerve soon ended up wavered, destroyed, and then completely shredded into a million tiny pieces that erupted into the form of hideous tears.

There really was just something about his moronic face that made her intellect drop by at least five IQ points; all meticulous planning skills carelessly getting tossed out the window in accompaniment. An important factor as to why she actively avoided him for nearly two straight weeks. She didn't trust herself to _not_ do something blatantly stupid while around his proximity ...again.

Merlin; and she thought the agonized expression he shot her in potions was bad enough.

The look he gave her now dissolved away from anger – it no longer held a distinct aura of visible irritation and glaring disgust. Instead, it formed into a wide-eyed face of disbelief, leaving Scorpius's jaw unhinged and his brows curved upwards to produce three distinguished forehead creases. Looking at her as if she'd just announced the title of Head Boy was being stripped away from him, and that Hogwarts would be closing its doors indefinitely.

At the given moment, she wished for such announcement instead.

"Are you going to say something!?"

Rose used the sleeve of her jumper to wipe a teary mixture of snot and visible crying from her tomato-red face. She felt humiliated over the unstable outburst. She didn't know if hormones were to blame, or just her typical emotional disaster of a personality, but the tears didn't stop.

"I-I know you hate me right now," she blubbered further. "But I just really need you to say someth –"

"Oh my god. Rose…"

She looked up just in time to see a flash of movement as Scorpius sat down beside her on the edge of his bed, arms soon coming to drape themselves around her trembling frame. This time, she was the one left speechless. Her head pressed against his chest as an immediate reflex to the sudden embrace.

"It's okay," he whispered, rubbing his hand alongside her upper arm as a comforting measure. "Stop crying. It's going to be alright, yeah?"

His efforts only made her sob harder.

Dammit, he was supposed to be livid! He apparently remained furious at her over the way she handled their whole disastrous breakup in the weeks prior. Though, could it really be called that, if they weren't ever technically together? She assumed no.

For some self-destructive reason, _anger_ was the reaction she'd secretly hoped for once making this particular announcement, too. Rose silently cursed Scorpius and his pointless niceties. Partially because she deserved none of them; partly because her life would be so much simpler if he just made it effortlessly easy to dislike.

If she had a galleon for every time she wished Scorpius Malfoy were more of an arsehole, she'd have enough gold to purchase the damn termination draught herself.

"Fuck," she moaned, not even intending the word to leave her thoughts. Eloquent as always, she was.

Scorpius hardly seemed to notice.

"When did you find out?"

"This morning."

"So I'm the first person you've told?"

"No…um, well actually – yes. I suppose so," Rose admitted. "Ali was with me when I took the test, but I haven't told anyone else."

He nodded back, appearing like he was still trying to piece together the parts of some massive, confusing puzzle. She couldn't blame him. She was, too.

"Holy shit, Rose." He dropped his arms away from her and proceeded to run a hand through one section of blond hair. "Oh my God."

"I know..."

"Damn," he cursed under his breath. "I was not expecting… _that_."

"I know," said Rose once more, feeling her tears finally halt themselves. "Me either."

"So where exactly does this leave us now?"

"You don't have to worry," Rose quickly clarified. "I'm obviously not keeping it. I just need –"

 _"WHAT?!"_

She cringed away at his loud exclamation. "I-I'm not keeping it. You can't seriously expect that I would."

"And you've already decided this, have you?" His eyes grey narrowed her. "Without even thinking to discuss it with me firs –"

"What the hell is there to discuss?"

"Oh I don't know," said Scorpius. "The alternate options to just killing our baby might be a prudent start."

"Killing our – _WHAT_?!" Rose's expression nearly glowed a shade of red at his smart remark. He couldn't be serious. " _Excuse me_?"

"I mean, shouldn't we at least talk about it?"

Rose took a deep breath, trying to solidify her thoughts before jumping off the rail again.

"Alright," she agreed tensely. "Fine...First off, by no means is it a 'baby.' The things a total of like, four bloody cells right now. Even a muggle pregnancy test probably wouldn't detect it. Second, I don't know what these 'alternate options' entail, but ending my life and getting disowned are definitely not sufficient ones."

"Our lives wouldn't _end_ –"

"Of course they would!" she bantered back. "We're seventeen for God sakes!"

He supplied, "I'm eighteen."

"Splendid," Rose spat. "Just because you're old enough to buy tobacco in most developed nations doesn't mean you're old enough to raise a human being, Malfoy."

There was a long pause before Scorpius finally spoke.

"I'd help out," he insisted. "You know...help you take care of it and stuff."

"I know you would," Rose softly replied.

"And that means nothing?"

"No," she objected. "It means everything!"

"Then how come –"

"That's exactly the reason you don't deserve to be forced into co-parenting with somebody like _me_... Someone who cringes away at the very thought of having a baby." She sighed before admitting, "I don't even know if I want kids, _ever_. Let alone right now."

"You're still in shock. We could do it – "

"No," she shook her head adamantly. "You said so yourself, no more than two minutes ago: I'm selfish. I'd make a terrible mum! Besides, how are we suppose to raise a child together when we're not even dating, let alone married?"

"People do it."

"Insane people."

Scorpius went silent for a moment, allowing Rose to take it upon herself and speak openly about the topic with newfound calmness.

"Look," she began. "Even you have to admit – ending this pregnancy is the best choice for us."

He remained quiet, looking down at the ground in front of where they sat.

"Just think about it for a second," Rose implored. "Seven months from now we'll be graduated – ready to embark on an entirely new chapter in our lives. A chapter that doesn't include birthing classes, nappies, and a screaming infant waking us up every two hours."

She paused, waiting for him to chime in, yet he just sat there with a solemn expression plastered across his face. "Aren't you still planning to do St Mungo's Healer Program after graduation?"

"Yes," he finally answered. "If I get in."

"'If?" she teased. "We all know you're gonna get straight O's on your N.E.W.T.s, Malfoy."

"You don't know that –"

"Yes. I do," she smiled. "I know you'll get accepted... But that's a _three-year_ program. Twelve hour days. Clinical rotation, classroom studies, PLUS a baby on top of everything?"

"I could do it."

"But you shouldn't _have_ to." Rose sighed, "And as for me – I don't even have that option."

"What do you mean?"

"I mean... as long as I play my cards right, I'm practically guaranteed a spot on the Chudley Cannons next year," Rose revealed. "It's been my dream to play for them ever since I was a kid."

"I know."

"I've already spoken with the team's manager and everything. He said as long as I play well this season, I'll be their top draft pick for Chaser come springtime. Something relatively _difficult_ if I'm attempting to ride around on a broomstick and chase quaffles while six months pregnant. I'd have to step down as Gryffindor's captain. There'd be no way."

She could tell his stance was finally succumbing to her pleading words.

Rose lastly begged, "Please... just see where I'm coming from. We made a mistake, but we don't have to let that mistake wreck the next eighteen years of our lives."

Scorpius muttered through clenched teeth, his body hunched over and leaning against the top section of his knees. "There's no changing your mind about this. Is there?"

"No," Rose weakly agreed. "There's not. And I really need your support on this... I can't do it alone."

His final answer made her exhale a huge sigh of relief.

"Fine...what do you want me to do?"

"Well," she tensely looked down at her hands. It was better just to come straight out and say it. "I-I um, sorta… well, I need money still. For the actual potion itself."

"How much do you need?"

"Uh," she mumbled, maintain a healthy handful of nervousness. "I've got seventy galleons saved up right now…. So I'd only need about two-hundred and thirty more –"

"Two hundred galleons!?"

"Yes."

"You're joking."

"It's a complicated potion," Rose explained. "This isn't like buying some simple headache tonic or sleeping draught. Steeping the ingredients together _alone_ takes nine months. That's why shops can charge so much. Women would give birth before it was done brewing if they attempted to make it themselves."

"You don't need a potion, they have a spell," Scorpius suggested. "If you just went to St Mungo's, I'm sure the healers can perfor–"

"ABSOLUTELY NOT!" Rose shrieked, eyes widening in horror.

"It's a lot safer."

"Safer? Suppose if I wanted my face plastered across the daily prophet's front page... yes, _safer_ would be wonderfully fine and dandy."

He objected, "They wouldn't –"

"Oh, yes. Yes, they would. I'm sure every healer and their mother would sell out information regarding the Minister's unwed, teenage daughter going in for some abortion charm… _No,_ Malfoy. Fuck no! I'd go to one of those back alley muggle clinics before I step foot inside St Mungo's."

Scorpius sighed with defeat, admitting weakly, "Okay. But I don't have the money right now, Rose."

"How much do you have?"

"About fifty, I think. Give or take –"

"FIFTY?!" she shrieked. "Sole heir to one of the wealthiest families in wizarding Britain – and you have fifty bloody galleons to your name!? How the hell...?"

"Do you think I just sleep with piles of gold underneath my mattress or something?"

"No, but that certainly would help –"

"I've got a bank account at Gringotts," he explained. "But I can't touch it until after I graduate."

"A good lot that'll do! I'll be the size of a Quidditch pitch by then!"

" _Relax_."

"How am I possibly supposed to relax right now?"

Scorpius's voice was calm, making her growing fears lessen though the confidence of his smooth words.

"I'll get the money, Rose."

* * *

 **A/N: Thanks for reading! Next chapter will be told through Scorpius's perspective.  
How, oh how, will he possibly get that money? xD**

 **Please review!**


	6. The Time-Turner

By the following morning, thoughts still raced relentlessly in Scorpius's head, questioning briefly if the events from last night were even real or merely figments of his unconscious mind at work.

She was pregnant. Rose Weasley, little miss sunshine glows from my arse, and everyone adores me, trotting around the castle while carrying around his child. Their child. Their _mistake_ , as was apparently its proper name, alive and growing inside her. A remaining fragment of what happened, to prove it wasn't all just some muddled up fantasy. Those nights were real, even if she tried her hardest to pretend they weren't.

Perhaps she was right. Perhaps they weren't even mildly equipped to handle such a lifetime responsibility while still only teenagers. Given their current standings with one another, it would be quite a challenge, managing nappy changes and feedings while Rose permanently maintained an everlasting resentment of him.

Plus, it's not like he _wanted_ to become a father anytime within the next bloody decade. The idea never even registered a single blip on his radar, until the time when Rose's announcement came crashing down like an anvil atop his normally subdued reality. It would put a kink in his plans, not to mention obliterate hers. Logically, everything she argued against made perfect sense.

 _Hadn't it?_

So why the hell did he feel so guilty about giving in and rolling over like some well-trained lap dog?

Maybe he was.

Maybe because coaxing the hard-headed Gryffindor to change her mind over _anything_ usually proved more tiring than scooping fistfuls of water up with your bare hands – pointless, and a colossal waste of time. No matter how hard he pushed, he knew he couldn't force her. He could make her keep it.

And maybe it was for the best.

Scorpius slept no more than a couple of hours in total after she'd left his room, though it felt closer to mere minutes in retrospect. Dark circles molded perfectly shaped crescent moons beneath his lower lids, grey eyes looking equally as exhausted as his restless mind felt. He regretted not keeping a constant supply of dreamless sleeping potion within his dorm for emergency situations like this.

All he could do was replay the scene over and over again, different endings prompted to come along with each subsequent vision.

What if he'd yelled? What if he'd threatened to tell the entire school? What if he reported her to Madam Pomfrey? What if _she_ 'd agreed to keep it?

 _No._

He forced himself back to the harsh realm of reality. It was done. Over before it even began. Just like everything else between them.

He needed to suck it up, not fuck things up, and get Rose the stupid money so he could stay out of her life, once and for all. He had to stop being delusional and unrealistic; an 'idealist' as Albus loved to call it.

Scorpius scowled down at the blank page ominously staring back up at him, taunting his lack of ability to place thoughts into words. In no way was this his ideal vision for how to spend a Sunday morning. The task proved harder than initially anticipated, and it was getting more miserable by the second.

He sighed. Dipping his quill in the inkwell and pressing it down against stiff parchment, he proceeded to write:

 _Father,_

Immediately Scorpius withdrew his quill, crumpling up the near-blank slip of parchment, and tossing it carelessly into the waste bin beside his desk.

Merlin, no. Way too formal. What was he thinking? Why was he making this so difficult? It shouldn't be.

He tried once more, a bit more successfully this time.

 _Dad,_

 _Hello! How've you been? I know I sent out a letter on Friday, but I'm writing once more, just to inform you of a minor mishap which has occurred. Don't worry, I'm perfectly fine, but unfortunately my school bag and textbooks are not._

 _You see, Al and I were practice-dueling in the common room last night, and I cast an Incendio spell without thinking. The spell unavoidably ricocheted off Al's shielding charm and landed atop my school bag in one corner of the room, igniting everything nearby it into a fiery pit of flames. Regrettably, I was unable to salvage any of the necessary materials inside. Could please send me two hundred galleons to replace the textbooks and leather satchel which burned up? Much appreciated._

 _See you in a few weeks!_

 _Thanks,  
Scorpius_

Scorpius reread over his words, frowning before soon disregarding the note beside its prior counterpart. A random third year wouldn't even believe that story, nonetheless anyone who knew him. No, he needed something better. Something to make himself sound less of an incompetent twat.

Twenty minutes and half a waste bin filled with ink-stained parchment later, he still managed little progress. He searched for anything to say as a cover-up. No lie appeared believable, and no fact seemed discrete enough. Although in a terrible way, maybe he just didn't _want_ it to.

His mind wandered as his hands lay idled.

In spite of everything sanity argued, Scorpius began writing once more, emotion pouring out from the tip of his quill; words he wouldn't dare speak breathing out of him in the form of worthless written scribbles.

 _Hi dad,_

 _Guess what?_

 _I got someone pregnant._

 _(Yeah, you did read that right...)_

 _You're going to be a grandfather! Except, no. No, you're not. She wants to get rid of it. Well...I guess I do too then, right? No sense in making my life a hundred times harder by trying to convince Rose Weasley out of something she's already set her mind on._

 _Oh, did I mention that part yet? She's the 'someone' I'm speaking about. Lovely, huh? You could co-grandparent with your former classmates, how wonderful does that sound? 'Could' being the key word, considering it's not actually going to happen. She's just going to owl-order a potion and drink down some liquid resolution to fix our mistake, instead. And let me tell you, what a mistake it was._

 _Rose thinks we'd get disowned for this, but I think she's full of it. She's got a family the size of a small country filled with fucking saints who adore her and support every single sodding decision she makes._

 _She's just always too damn worried about what everyone else thinks._

 _Merlin, I wish mum were here still so that I could talk to her about everything. Although honestly,_ _she'd probably be halfway down Diagon Alley_ _before I could even get a word out edgewise_ – _making you traipse behind her carrying a bagful of gender-neutral onesies and picking out nursery colors with Aunt Daphne... She'd be thrilled. I remember her saying how much she always wanted another baby._

 _Fuck. Anyway, could you send me two hundred galleons? Rose needs money for the termination because neither of us has enough with only a few weeks of this term left. That whole 'yearly allowance' bullshit apparently doesn't take into account the need to rid an unplanned pregnancy. Go figure._

 _Thanks,  
Your Disastrous Heap of a Son_

Salazar help him.

Scorpius blinked back at the page filled with emotional scrawl.

He pulled out his wand, whispering an _Incendio_ charm and watching as the parchment reduced itself to nothing but glowing embers scattered across his otherwise empty desktop. How sadly reflective of his current situation. Trying to incinerate all problems, erasing them from the very creases of time and existence.

Time.

He stared down at the parchment's ashes once more.

 _Obliterating its very existence._

Holy mother of Merlin, that was it! Scorpius nearly flew from his seated position like a burning flame was placed underneath his chair. The idea hit him faster than a train racing down the tracks at a thousand miles per second; how had he been so daft to not think of it in the first place?

He quickly ran over to where his Hogwarts chest rested beneath his unmade bed. After quick retrieval of the chest, he flipped open its main compartment and unzipped an even smaller section which lay nestled within the top interior. Once inside the large pocket, he quickly felt what he was searching for, removing from it a green velvet sac before standing to his feet. He dumped over the pouches' content into the palm of his hand, holding the unique object to the light for inspection as a grin uncontrollably crept over his features.

The item was still there, tucked away just like he knew it would be. He grasped hold of the necklace, running a finger along its tattered chain as he studied the nearly forgotten about hidden treasure. It looked the same as when he'd discovered it. Old. Shabby.

 _Frighteningly illegal._

Time-Tuners were banned nearly three decades back, sometime relatively soon after the Second Wizarding War ended and the reconstruction efforts had begun. It was a proactive plan, set in place by the ministry with hopes of eliminating any slim chance withstanding Voldemort sympathizers (or just desperately grieving persons) would ever get hold of one.

Dangerous and risky, the objects pose, _'a threat to the very the delicate threads of society';_ or so Scorpius remembered reading out of some History of Magic textbook during third year.

As if legality and government regulation ever stopped criminals before.

His grandfather's illicit interest in collecting dark artifacts was no well-kept secret, by any means. Partially the reason why (he could only assume) the Manor was thoroughly raided of any lasting relic considered by the Auror department to be a so-called _threat_ once the war had settled. Plenty of artifacts were found and confiscated, most, either locked away or destroyed.

Most.

The summer before Scorpius's first year at Hogwarts was an exceptionally long one, bringing with it the sudden passing of his grandfather and a divvying up of multiple assets for the remainder of Lucius' estate. His final will and testament had made the direct implication of a True Time-Turner, locked away within an underground vault at Gringotts that few even knew existed. With the ministry getting wind of such unlawful mention, a routine search of said vault and a brief inspection of the Manor transpired, but they found no such object within either location. They quickly deemed the mention insignificant –likely made out of madness by a barmy old man.

Strange.

When Scorpius asked his father why Lucius would claim to leave him something for his inheritance which didn't even exist, the idea was brushed off as trivial.

" _Any Time-Turner your grandfather would've owned has long since been seized by the Ministry_ ," he had been readily reassured. _"They don't even exist anymore."_

Stranger.

Now holding the object within his grasp, Scorpius beamed widely.

He and Rose's problems were all but completely solved.

* * *

Four hours. It had taken him four fucking hours to build up enough courage to discretely slip Rose a folded over note, informing her to meet up later that evening for another secreted assembly between the pair. With the moonlight streaming into the Head Boy's dorm now, it cascaded delicately across her over-analyzing face, glimmers somehow managing to make her features look even more appealing than before.

"Okay, wait. So backup." Rose's hand went up in the air, her sapphire orbs narrowing. "How can you be so sure there's no five-hour limit? That seems – "

"Impossible?" he supplied.

"Unlikely…"

They had taken refuge once more in the privacy of his dormitory, standing parallel to each other no more than five minutes after Scorpius begun explaining his master plan. The Gryffindor held the golden necklace gingerly, scrutinizing it with a dubious expression to make it evident she still reserved her doubts.

"It's my grandfathers," he explained, gesturing to the Time-Turner. "Well _was_ my grandfathers, before he died when I was eleven. Like I said, he wrote all about it in his will. No one could find it in his Gringotts vault, and everyone thought it was just a big farce –"

"And you think he just left it in some box?" Rose cut in. "Some hidden, dark artifact buried inside a chest of old jewelry up in your attic? You can't seriously think this bloody thing works, do you?"

"I'm sure it works," assured Scorpius. "Why would anyone bother keeping a five-hour charmed Time-Turner hidden from everyone for years?"

Rose didn't seem to have a good enough answer to reply with, so she just continued looking at the artifact carefully. Her sight grazed across the hourglass center, running her fingertips against the knobs on either side.

"It's illegal, you know," she answered finally, breaking through their silence. "If it's what you say it is… They're banned practically everywhere. You could get in loads of trouble if someone found out you had this."

"Are you going to tell on me?"

"No. Of course not."

"Alright then," Scorpius muttered, glancing down. "Honestly, I'd probably only get a slap on the wrist in comparison to how much trouble my dad would be in. You know, if he were the one discovered with it…If the Manor ever got searched again –"

"You think he was hiding it?"

"No clue," Scorpius shrugged. "But if someone were ever to find it... I reckon, with his record – "

"They could easily claim premeditated intent," said Rose plainly, glaring once Scorpius's lips began creasing into the faintest smirk. " _What_!? You think you were the only one listening to Professor Binns drone on about Time-Turners during third year?"

"No, I just thought you hated History of Magic –"

"I do. It's duller than a rusted old knife. Probably more painful, too."

"It's fascinating actually," Scorpius corrected before she could make much progress on the approaching rant. "If you actually take them time to step back and listen."

Rose rolled her eyes at his sentiments. "Alright, Lorde of all things geeky, just keep talking to me about this brilliant plan of yours. I'm... _interested_. It just seems– "

"What?"

She hesitated, though only briefly. "Risky."

"Risky?" he repeated. "What happened to Gryffindor bravery and all that bollocks?"

The comment seemed to strike a nerve, her face creasing with annoyance. "Think about it, Malfoy. Do you really think your dad was hiding your grandfather's _illegal_ time-turner up in the bloody attic for years, for just anyone to go rummaging around and find?"

Scorpius paused, not quite sure of his answer. "I don't know," he responded honestly. "I can't imagine the ministry would miss something so blatantly obvious when they did the search of our house initially –"

"It just seems like a pretty piss poor hiding spot, if you ask me."

"Well then maybe it wasn't," he shrugged giving in to her doubtful tone. "Maybe they _did_ miss it. Look no matter how it got there – I just took it without thinking, really. Two years since and no ones come rifling through my things to find it. Apparently, it's not missed."

She hesitated before talking, meeting his stormy gaze with her crystal one. "And you really think this plan will work, do you?"

"I think it has a damn good chance… and an ever better likelihood no one will have to find out."

Rose nodded, responding well to that particular detail. "Alright. Run it by me, one more time."

Scorpius took a deep breath, knowing he could easily do so after having calculated the plot over in his mind no less than one hundred different times earlier that day. "All we have to do is get a single vile of contraceptive potion," he began carefully. "Either we steal some from Madam Pomfrey –"

"Which you said may be difficult," she avidly reminded. "Didn't you? She could catch us."

"Right, I did. But I also said we could just brew some ourselves… Granted, it takes a full five days to stew, but that's a hell of a lot better than the nine months the termination draught takes. I went to the library earlier to look it up, and all the ingredients we'd need for it are in the potions cabinet downstairs. We wouldn't have to owl-order from an apothecary or anything."

"And then what?" she questioned raising up her shoulders. "We go back in time and shove the potion down my throat before I climb into the shower and shag you?"

Scorpius attempted not laugh at her ridiculously anxious expression. "No," he said. "I mean, sort of. We'll do it while you're sleeping. Look, you stayed in my dorm that night, remember?"

Rose's head nodded once.

"So we take along a couple of vials of sleeping draught – in case one of us starts to wake up – and we slip you the contraceptive potion during the middle of the night. The book in the library said it's good for up to eight hours, so that should be more than enough time. No interaction with anyone; we don't even have to leave my dorm room. There's no risk of getting caught. Even by ourselves, really. We wouldn't risk changing the future. Just...this."

His eyes fell on her stomach.

Rose wore a calculating look as if seemingly trying to discern if she should argue back or accept going against her stubbornness for once in her life. She finally settled on neither, letting out a weak sigh before crossing the room and slumping down on his bed. "Malfoy, it's a good plan. The contraceptive potion, that's brilliant, really. I just wish I would've thought of it _first_. Before this whole mess happened."

"Yes, well," he cleared his throat. "Hindsight's always 20/20, Rose."

She breathed, looking up at him with _that_ expression. The same one he could never read. The one where her lips curled up and her eyelashes fluttered one too many times. She whispered edgily between parted lips, "I'm sorry…"

"What in the world do you keep apologizing for?"

"It's my fault," she reasoned. "You know it is –"

"How the hell is this _your_ fault?"

"I remember. You were about to go and get your wand." She bit down on her lip. A nervous habit he took note of far too often. "You were responsible. Always. Every time. You tried stopping me, and all I did was say, 'Oh, don't worry, we'll be fine.' Fine. Wonderfully fucking fine; what's one little slip-up, right? And now look what's happened! Everything's not fine, Malfoy. Forgive me for feeling a smidge apologetic over the whole thing."

 _Apologize for ignoring me like some well-hidden blemish on your reputation, not for getting pregnant. At least one of those things was in your control._

He settled on a simpler response. "No," he softly agreed. "Everything's not fine. But it will be. We'll fix this."

"You promise it'll work?"

"I do," Scorpius replied. "There's no reason it shouldn't. Unless the Time-Turner has that five-hour charm like you said. But I highly doubt it."

"Okay," she finally breathed words of agreement, shaking her head as if waving the negative images away. "...Let's do it."

He looked down at her seated position on his bed, Rose avidly speaking once more before he could formulate any type of reply.

"But you know, Malfoy…I'm gonna laugh square in your face if that ancient piece of costume jewelry doesn't even take us back five bleeding minutes, nonetheless five hours."

"Deal."

* * *

 **A/N: Okay, so a few things...**

 **First off, I FINALLY changed my username...god bless. The one from when I was 14 just wasn't cutting it anymore.**

 **It took me a little while to upload this chapter. School has been gradually overtaking my life with research papers and flashcards trying to memorize every detail about the cardiovascular system :( gahhhhh, real life blows sometimes, so forgive the slow update.**

 **A bit of a filler chapter, but with loads of information I had to get out.**

 **Was gonna do a flashback of Scorpius finding the Time-Turner (as you all know how much I love flashbacks lol) but I figured a few paragraphs explaining how he came to get it would suffice. Hopefully, it all made sense and wasn't too boring. I'm trying to** **speed up the pace, I promise.  
And again, took a few things from the Cursed Child (aka Astoria's death and Lucius leaving Draco the Time-Turner).**

 **Shout out to everyone who has reviewed and followed this fic! As always, it's so very much appreciated.**

 **Until next time, my loves :)**


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